- Title: RWANDA: SECOND ANNIVERSARY OF THE CIVIL WAR IN RWANDA
- Date: 7th April 1995
- Summary: RWANDA (RECENT / FILE) (RTV) (FILE - 1994) SVS MASSACRE VICTIMS (3 SHOTS) SLV BODIES LOADED ONTO TRUCK LV STREET SCENE PAN PRISONERS LV INTERNATIONAL TRIBUNAL HEADQUARTERS MUC CHIEF PROSECUTOR SV WOMEN SORTING OUT FILES PAN FILES (RECENT) NYAMATA SLV MAN SITTING WITH CHILDREN OUTSIDE HUT LV NYAMATA CHURCH LVS/SVS BODIES (5 SHOTS) SV ETWASHAYIJA EVARISTE'S MOTHER LV MAN WITH CHILDREN OUTSIDE HUT MCU ETWASHAYIJA EVARISTE SAYING JUSTICE IS TAKING TOO LONG IT SHOULD BE CARRIED OUT SOON AND EVERYONE WHO KILLED SHOULD BE PUNISHED (RWANDAN) LVS FAMILY WORKING (2 SHOTS) GITARAMA SVS PRISON (2 SHOTS) SVS/PAN PRISONERS (3 SHOTS) MCU PRISONER GERRARD MUHAYIMANA: "THIS IS NOT JUSTICE. I HAVE BEEN TAKEN IN 1994 AND UNTIL NOW I DON'T KNOW WHY I AM HERE" (ENGLISH) MCU PRISONER KIGALI SVS MAGISTRATE'S TRAINING SCHOOL (7 SHOTS) MCU TRAINEE MAGISTRATE JANVIER MUNYANEZA SAYING JUSTICE IS JUSTICE AND THERE IS NOTHING ELSE, JUSTICE DEMANDS WE FOLLOW THE LAW (FRENCH) PAN TRAINING SCHOOL MCU PRISONER PETER BISETSA SAYING IT IS TAKING TOO LONG ENGLISH) MCU/CU ALAIN SIGG AT DESK WORKING MCU ALAIN SIGG (SPOKESMAN FOR THE INTERNATIONAL GENOCIDE TRIBUNAL) SAYING HE CAN FEEL BITTERNESS AND THE LENGTH OF TIME IS NOT CONTRIBUTING TO EASING THAT FEELING (ENGLISH) SLV/SVS (7 SHOTS) MCU RUZINDANA KAGGWA (TRAINEE MAGISTRATE) SAYING THE PEOPLE ARE EAGERLY WAITING TO SEE WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO THOSE ACCUSED (ENGLISH) LV/SVS MARKET SCENE (3 SHOTS) HAS TOWN Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
- Embargoed: 20th June 2014 18:57
- Keywords:
- Location: GITARAMA / KIGALI, RWANDA
- Country: Rwanda
- Topics: Conflict
- Reuters ID: LVA3RUDK37UER0B0BTJIHSQ7NGNM
- Aspect Ratio: 4:3
- Story Text: INTRO: Exactly two years ago the world's attention was suddenly focused on a tiny African country. Rwanda was almost unheard of until it was plunged into one of the bloodiest civil wars in modern times.
--------------------------------------------------------------- April the sixth, 1994, is best remembered in Rwanda as the beginning of the country's darkest hour in history.
Within minutes of the assassination of President Juvenal Habyarimana, an orgy of killings began and lasted nearly three months.
Extremist Hutus slaughtered hundreds of thousands of people, mainly from the minority Tutsi tribe. Moderate Hutus were not spared.
Now two years later, not a single person has been convicted.
Tens of thousands of suspects languish in jail.
The international genocide tribunal has only indicted ten suspects and arrested two. No date has been set for the hearings.
There is anger and frustration at the slow process of justice from both the families of victims and those detained in jail.
Etwashayija Evariste lives with his mother and brother's children in Nyamata. Inside the local church thousands of people were slaughtered by Hutu militia. Today, the church remains as it was on that tragic night.
And the dead remain where they fell - as a memorial. Among the skeletons are Evariste's wife, his two children and his brother.
His mother survived by hiding under the corpses - pretending to be dead.
Echoing the sentiments of his village Evariste complains: "Justice is taking too long. It should be carried out soon and everyone who killed must be punished." He and his family cannot forgive or forget what happened until those responsible are punished.
In Rwanda's jails - designed to accomodate around 10,000 prisoners, nearly 70,000 suspects are being held. Gitarama prison has 6,500 prisoners, the majority claim they are innocent.
Gerrard Muhayamana says it is not justice. He was arrested in 1994 and has not been told why he is being held.
But Rwanda has no functioning criminal courts or enough qualified magistrates. So in a desperate attempt to address these problems the government has opened a magistrates training school.
Prospective jurists will graduate after just four months.
Guilty verdicts will carry the death penalty.
Janvier Munyaneza, a trainee magistrate, hid under corpses for several hours in May 1994 while he watched his entire family being slaughtered. He believes this experience will not affect his judgement. "Justice is justice and nothing else. And justice demands that we follow the law." But few suspects have confidence in the magistrates crash course, even fewer support the international genocide tribunal whose mandate is to prosecute the ring leaders.
Prisoner Peter Bisetsa says: "It is taking too long in fact and it's doing bad for people who are imprisoned here. If the tribunal does not start then nothing will start." Alain Sigg, the tribunal spokesman based in Kigali, says he understands the added bitterness the delay is causing, but lack of staffing remains the real problem.
Gitagata children's detention centre is Rwanda's worst house of horrors. More than 1,000 children are imprisoned.Under Rwandan law under-14's can't be tried but the government's under pressure from survivors of the massacres to punish everyone regardless of age.
Trainee magistrate Ruzindana Kaggwa says the population is eager to know what will happen to the youngsters accused of taking part in killings.
The people of Rwanda are crying out for justice. But if the system continues to delay, the fear is the people may decide to take the law into their own hands. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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